Crustaceans, such as all types of lobster and crab, are an important food source, especially in coastal regions. Many types of crustaceans are considered delicacies, and as such are in demand throughout the country. However, most types of crustaceans are found in limited regional areas; for example, the American lobster is found along the northeast coast of the North American continent, from the Carolinas to Labrador.
Since crustaceans must typically be kept alive until just before they are to be eaten, crustaceans must be delivered alive and kept alive at any establishment desiring to sell them. This has created a need for efficiently transporting live crustaceans, as well as a simple and effective means of keeping crustaceans alive at the location to which they are delivered. Currently, crustaceans are typically transported on ice in boxes or crates. However, since crustacean's gills must be kept wet for them to respirate, they can survive for only a matter of hours in such a state. Accordingly, if crustaceans are to be transported a distance from their point of origin, it has been necessary to transport them by air, which is prohibitively expensive. As a result, in the vast majority of the country, each of the non-indigenous crustaceans is typically an expensive delicacy which is often simply not available.
Even if the crustaceans can be transported, at the destination they are typically placed in tanks of water that is chemically treated to prevent crustacean waste from contaminating the water and killing the crustaceans. These tanks are large, heavy, and expensive to operate. Often, some or all of the crustaceans in the tanks suddenly die. Also, the tanks do nothing to prevent the crustaceans from killing one another while in the tanks.